Pedal to the metal: Winning three-straight games last week may have helped ease the tensions of fans across Montreal after dropping six in a row, but Michael Cammalleri isn’t ready to breathe a sigh of relief just yet.

“Those wins didn’t take the pressure off of us; wins never do that. We’re playing in the NHL and we’re trying to win the Stanley Cup,” offered the Habs sniper, who has racked up a goal and two assists in the past three games. “We never felt like we were in panic mode like everybody thought we were. Our streak helped us relax and it will help us play a little more loose tonight.”

Back in action: After beating the Bruins on Saturday night, the Canadiens have had to wait nearly a week before hitting the ice for another game. The time at home has helped some of the Habs rest and recover, and David Desharnais is hoping he and his teammates can pick up right where they left off.

When you have a long break like we just had, you sometimes have the tendency to be a little rusty early on. We’ll have to make sure we’re keeping things simple,” described Desharnais, who has been centering Cammalleri and Erik Cole for the past five games. “The Sens are a good team. They’ve won six of their last seven games. Like every team in the league, you really can’t take anyone lightly. We just have to focus on doing what we know we have to do and we’ll be fine.”

Familiar territory: Back in his old stomping grounds, former Senators head coach Jacques Martin feels right at home behind the bench at Scotiabank Place. The lineup may be different than it was when he was leading the Sens for eight seasons, but Martin still knows what to expect from his old team.

“It’s a rebuilt team. They have good veteran forwards and defensemen. Their power play is firing on all cylinders and that’s helped them have a good start to the season,” explained Martin of the NHL’s top ranked power play. “We have to force them to take more penalties than us because their power play is so strong. We’re going to need to use our work ethic to make things happen.”